ASEMIC

Henri Michaux
Narration (excerpt) 1927

Asemic writing has been made by poets, writers,
painters, calligraphers, children, and scribblers, all around the world. Most
people make asemic writing at some time, possibly
when testing a new pen.

Educators talk about children going through distinct stages of "mock
letters", "pseudowriting" and so on,
when they're learning to write. Many of us made asemic
writing before we were able to write words.

Looking at asemic writing does something to us. Some
examples have pictograms or ideograms, which suggest a meaning through their
shape. Others take us for a ride along their curves. We like some, we dislike
others.

They tend to have no fixed meaning. Their meaning is open. Every viewer can
arrive at a personal, absolutely correct interpretation.

Asemic writing has been presented by means of
books, paintings, scrolls, single pages, mailed envelopes, walls, cinema,
television and computers, particularly via the internet.

Henri Michaux, who wrote the piece up above, was a
poet and a writer and a painter.

If you’re curious to discover more works in this tradition of illegible
writing or wordless writing, please try any of the following in your favourite search engine: